Breast tumor detection with TR‐DORT based on multilayered Green's function theory

Abstract Ultrawideband (UWB) time‐reversal techniques are widely used in microwave imaging systems to detect and localize breast tumors. Measuring the scattering electromagnetic fields from a breast phantom can be time‐reversed and back‐propagated to refocus on a tumor. In this study, a Debye model was applied to the breast phantom. Using the decomposition of the time‐reversal operator (TR‐DORT), images were obtained in the UWB frequency range of 3.1–10.6 GHz. The conventional TR imaging method employs the free‐space Green's function to refocus on the tumor, which degrades refocusing in a lossy and dispersive breast phantom. We propose the use of the cylindrical dyadic Green's function in a three‐layer medium for TR imaging. The excitation system consists of a circular array of spiral antennas. The imaging results of the proposed Green's function in TR‐DORT were subsequently calculated, indicating successful tumor detection in different application scenarios of the lossy and dispersive breast phantom.